Phœnix Insurance v. Underwood
Phœnix Insurance v. Underwood
Opinion of the Court
delivered the opinion of the court.
This is an action on a policy of insurance issued by the Phoenix Insurance Company of Hartford, in the State of Connecticut, upon a house and printing press and materials, in Helena, Arkansas, which were
Several points are pressed in the argument for reversal, — the jury, under the instructions of the court, having found a verdict for the plaintiff.
First, it is objected that certain papers were allowed to be taken out by the jury, as well as certain depositions which had been excluded from their ■consideration by the court.
This objection cannot be allowed as it stands in the record; as we see that the court excluded these matters from the consideration of the jury, and we have nothing to show that the excluded matter was ever read by the jury, or that the fact of taking these papers out with them had the slightest influence on the verdict rendered. It might be that if it appeared that the papers were read by the jury, there would be something in this objection; but until something of this kind is shown, we must presume that the jury considered only the testimony permitted by the court to go to them, rather than that they violated their duty.
It is insisted, however, that the policy was not payable, because of a failure to comply with certain conditions ' annexed to it.
First, a condition, or rather stipulation, the precise effect of which, as it stands, we need not now deter
But the principal matter debated before us is found in the fifteenth condition annexed to the policy, which provided in substance that no suit should be brought on this policy except within twelve months after the loss should have occurred, and that in case any such suit were brought after the expiration of this period the lapse of time should be taken as conclusive evidence against ■ the validity of the claim. The war coming on, this suit was not brought until July 30, 1866, — the loss occurring, as stated, January 24, 1861.
On this question we unhesitatingly adopt the view taken by the Supreme Court of the United States in’ the case of Semmes v. Hartford Insurance Co., 13 Wallace, 158, that the war prevented the performance of the condition of the contract within the time agreed on, and rebutted the presumption attaching to the non-performance thereof, and that when once rebutted nothing but a presumption of law or of fact can revive it, and that there is nothing in the law or in the contract that does so revive it.
Several other questions were discussed before us, but we do not deem it necessary to determine them. It suffices to say that most of them were passed upon by the jury, and we see nothing upon which we are authorized to reverse their finding. The result is that the judgment must be affirmed.
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.